HOW TO GET THE KIDS MOVING THIS SUMMER
It might be tougher than ever to get your little ones out of the house and exercising during the holidays, but fitness expert RUTH LYNCH offers tips and advice on how to do just that
NOW the summer holidays are here, schoolchildren across the country will be getting ready to spend the long summer days… sitting in their rooms for a whole six weeks of unadulterated Fortnite and Minecraft binges!
With this year’s online crazes not looking like they’re going anywhere, the age old problem of getting kids out of the house and moving more is as much of a challenge as ever.
Scarily, Ofcom statistics say that schoolkids are indulging in more screen time than ever, the average being nearly 55 hours per child per week! Or more than two full days without sleep!
These 55 hours make up more than 50% of a child’s awake time.
SET THE RECORD STRAIGHT
WE ALL know we need to move more, but do you know how much?
Kids need an hour of moderate exercise a day – that’s swimming, cycling, running around, football, dancing and anything else that gets the heart pumping faster. Anyone over the age of 18 needs 150 minutes, or two and a half hours, per week. Even babies and toddlers need to be encouraged to move.
Without scheduled break times and timetabled PE when they’re not at school, getting an hour of moderate exercise a day can be challenging. With so much temptation inside the house, what can you do to get them back outside and having adventures?
SET A CHALLENGE
YOU can’t beat a bit of competition to get children going, especially if it means getting one up on their siblings. Why not set your little (and not so little) ones a challenge to get those muscles moving?
A simple way to do this is with a fitness tracker.
You don’t need an expensive branded one that tracks every aspect of your body’s movement, you can find some cheap and cheerful movement and step counters online.
Whoever does the most steps or racks up the most active minutes gets to choose the next family outing – great inspiration to get going and also a really good way to spend family time together.
Having a visible reward and letting children feel they’re in control of when and how they move will really get them engaged.
To add some learning fun into the mix, why not use the week’s total to map a route of where you could have walked physically – such as to world cities, or up famous mountains of the world.
ROCK OUT
FORGET building virtual worlds in Minecraft, why not get out and explore the one on your doorstep? Getting outdoors doesn’t mean buying expensive hiking gear, you just need some flat, comfortable shoes and easy to move in clothes. Fortnite might be hot right now, but another massive craze sweeping the nation is the painted rocks movement. The hobby involves people hunting down painted rocks and re-hiding them in the local area or replacing them with their own creations. The great thing about this activity is that you can stay in and paint on rainy days, then take your rocks out when the sun comes back out. Got a tech savvy tween or a teenager glued to social media? The national Love on the Rocks Facebook group currently boasts up to 75,000 members and is a great way to find out which areas people are hiding rocks in and to share pictures of the ones you have made or found.
SCREEN SWAP REWARDS
AS ANY parent will tell you, getting out more is great in theory, but in reality it can be very difficult, especially when you try to get children and teenagers to step away from their screens.
We all know bribing our kids to clean their dirty bedrooms, get in the bath or be nice to their little sister works – it’s a tried and tested parenting method!
So why not look at rewarding your little ones for the time they spend away from the screen?
For every hour of activity kids do, you can reward them with an hour of screen time. Or, for every hour they’re active, they can earn points towards a toy they really want or tickets to a theme park, for example.
Just don’t use food as a reward, especially if it’s sugary or fatty.
CAMP OUT
WHILE time off with the family is great, it’s not a luxury we can all afford when the pressures of work are calling.
If you’re out all day, how can you ensure the family is moving as much as it needs to? Many local leisure centres, gyms, schools and other providers run holiday camps, lasting from a few days to a few weeks at a time.
Activity camps and holiday activities are a great way to get the kids excited about something and moving around – especially if you choose a sport or activity based one.
Let your kids have a hand in picking which one they go to, you’re less likely to have a hard time getting them there and they may even be inspired to take the activity up out of the holidays too.
Kids need an hour of moderate exercise a day
Ruth Lynch
from Life Leisure